Kenzie is a male grayfur. His strength is in his wisdom, and he is the calm levelheaded mouse who has led patrols for over twenty seasons. He is a very methodical mouse, who thinks about what he says and does, before words ever leave his mouth or his muscles pass swiftly into action. Kenzie's always-prudent plans are why he has become a strong and trusted leader in the Mouse Guard's ranks. His gray fur is not a sign of age however, he is only slightly older than Saxon or Rand. [1] Kenzie wields a wooden staff.

Spoiler Warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Contents

Kenzie was born in 1121 and grew up in Willowroot. During his early life, he dreamed of joining the Guard and becoming a deadly warrior. His father, a blacksmith by the name of Ailfrid taught him that sometimes in bad situations, it is more important to be clever rather than being a good fighter.[2] Kenzie took this lesson to heart and when he joined the Guard, he vowed to rely more on his wits than his staff. After befriending Saxon, a young sword-obsessed warrior, he quickly rose through the ranks of the Guard, eventually becoming a Patrol Leader.

In the Fall of 1152, Kenzie, Lieam and Saxon were sent on an important mission from Gwendolyn to investigate the disappearance of a Merchant Mouse last seen travelling from Rootwallow to Barkstone.[3] The Guardmice searched the trail, and eventually found an abandoned cart lying overturned under a tree. With the light fading, Kenzie stated that they should get some rest. The following morning, he was woken by Saxon, who had discovered a trail of grain leading away from the track. The two were soon joined by Lieam, and the trio followed the trail to a large burrow.

They were then ambushed by a snake, and were forced to flee inside the safety of a tree. When inside, Lieam told the group that they could never have killed such a beast, and Kenzie retorted, "...It matters not what you fight, but what you fight for." The groups morale raised, they left the safety of the tree and continued the search. Soon after, Saxon and Kenzie found a snake burrow filled with offspring. The two mice jumped in and slaughtered the nest, preventing the unborn serpents from ever harming the Territories.

While inside the nest, Kenzie heard yelling, and he and Saxon quickly rushed to Lieam's aid. However, by the time they arrived, they discovered that Lieam had already killed the snake, and after searching its stomach, the found the corpse of the Grain Peddler. After quickly burying the dead mouse, Kenzie told the group that they were now bound for Barkstone, revealing that while he had been searching the cart, he had come across a map of Lockhaven: the merchant had been a traitor.

Kenzie and Saxon fighting in Barkstone.

Along the road to Barkstone, the Guardmice came across Midnight, the Guard's weaponsmith. Lieam was about to tell Midnight that the Grain Peddler had been a traitor, but Kenzie stopped him and told him later that they shouldn't talk openly of the matter until they had figured out who was friend and who was foe.[4] After arriving at Barkstone, they went about the city asking questions about the Traitor Mice. The town guard didn't like this however, and started to follow them around. Kenzie announced that the group needed a distraction, and before he could stop him, Saxon shouted to the town that they were about to behold a spectacle: a duel between two of the Guard's finest.

With this cover, Lieam was able to slip away and continue searching for answers. Meanwhile, the fight between Saxon and Kenzie had grown out of hand, and two members of the Axe Army, Lyndon and Thaddeus, tied the mice up and dragged them from the city. While left unconscious outside the city gates, the two Guardmice were found by Celanawe, an old hermit mouse who chose to live far from mouse civilization.[5] Saxon awoke first, only to discover that the two had been strung up in Celanawe's hut. The oldfur accused the two mice of stealing his weapon, the Black Axe. After an argument, Saxon freeing himself from his bonds into a brawl with Celanawe and Kenzie woke up.

Eventually, however, Celanawe was convinced that they were not is enemy, but by that time, a fire had started and his house burned down. With no other alternative, he marched with the Kenzie and Saxon to Lockhaven, which Midnight's Army was holding siege. As the trio was weaponless, Kenzie made a detour to a tree, where he had stored swords for times of trouble. Armed and prepared, they finally arrived at Lockhaven.

Unfortunately, with Midnight's army blocking the main entrance to the stronghold, the three Guardmice weren't able to gain access to Lockhaven. The oldfur Celanawe showed the two Guardmice a secret way into Lockhaven that the Guard wouldn't have known to seal. The trio arrived in the Matriarch's office just in time: Midnight and his mice were fighting Gwendolyn, Rand, Sadie and Lieam. With the help of the reinforcements, the Guardmice succeeded, Celanawe defeated Midnight and he retrieved the legendary Black Axe.[6] Kenzie and Saxon then marched Midnight to the edge of the Scent Border, where he was forced to survive as an outcast without the help of the Guard he sought destroy.[7]

During the Winter of 1152, Kenzie led a patrol consisting of himself, Saxon, Lieam, Sadie, and Celanawe to Sprucetuck in order to secure supplies for Lockhaven.[8] After the group successfully gathered two bottles of medicine, Kenzie led the group from Sprucetuck and back to Lockhaven. However, during the journey back, he, Saxon, and Sadie fall through a vent-hole in the ground; revealing the abandoned weasel tunnels of Darkheather. Split up from Lieam and Celanawe, they had no choice but to explore Darkheather. After some time, the trio came across a large group of bats and Saxon was captured - but not before Kenzie could slay one of them with his lantern. Kenzie and Sadie searched for Saxon, and during the course of the hunt, Kenzie revealed his feelings for Sadie and sang for her the Ballad of the Ivory Lass.[9]

However, after hours of fruitless searching, the two laid down to rest. They were awoken by an angry Saxon, who berated them for deserting the search for him and leaving him to his fate. Kenzie retorted that Saxon should leave him and Sadie out of it, as Saxon chose not to follow his heart. The three Guardmice reunited, they set about searching for an exit. Sadie discovered an underground river, and convinced the others to row in the direction of Lockhaven. After a short journey, the trio came across a damaged well with the mark of the Lockhaven mason on it. Kenzie figured that they must have arrived at Lockhaven and called out for help. The group was rescued by Gwendolyn and some Guardmice, and were shocked to hear the Lieam and Celanawe hadn't arrived back.[10]

Kenzie and Saxon rushed to Isabel, and asked her if they could have the hares' assistance. The hares agreed, and Kenzie, Saxon and Isabel rode off to find him. After a short while, they came across a dead owl and a trail of pawprints leading away from it. They followed the trail, and quickly discovered a fatigued Lieam carrying his mentor on his back. After strapping Celanawe and Lieam to one of the hares, they rode back to Lockhaven with haste. It was then revealed that Celanawe had died and Lieam had broken his arm.[11]

Kenzie later attended Celanawe's funeral with Sadie, explaining to her that they could not truly remember him as the Black Axe, as this would ruin the mystery that had shrouded the legendary figure. After the funeral, he and Sadie were assigned to help fix the Lockhaven well, and Gwendolyn stated that they had been, "inseparable" since their return.[12]